Studying forests at the PhD level

Mendel University offers many excellent study programmes and we already covered some of them, for example, horticulture and European forestry, but also economics and management and international territorial studies if you want something more interdisciplinary. This time, for those of you who love nature, did you know that you can study forests at the PhD level? That’s totally possible at MENDELU!

There are four study programme options, all of them offered by the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology. No matter what you choose, you can then find employment at research institutions, academia, national or municipal forest administration or in related fields of forestry and landscape management. You’re also expected to participate in research and publishing activities.

Forest Ecology is for ecologically-minded people who wish to study a fragile relationship between organisms and possible pollution disturbances in forest ecosystems. If you want to gain a deep understanding of all the mechanisms influencing population dynamics, a special distribution of organisms and matter flows in order to contribute to maintaining biodiversity, this is for you.

Forest Pathology and Mycology, as the name suggests, focuses on the scientific study of fungi and plant diseases. You will study pathogens, saprotrophs and endophytes of woody species as well as the biodiversity of mycobiota in forest ecosystems.

Forest Phytology, not to be confused with pathology, is a discipline focused on the study of plants that inhabit a forest ecosystem. If you want to study forest biomes, there’s no better match for you. You will obtain comprehensive knowledge of the relationship between plants and abiotic factors in forest ecosystems with an emphasis on trees.

Forest Management is for modern lumberjacks and lumberjanes who want to take care of forests. You will be analysing dendrometric variables using different sensing methods, modelling forest growth and dynamics, studying the habitat and watching for climatic conditions. You should be able to solve practical issues that arise in forest ecosystems through the means of data collection, mathematical modelling, growth simulations and asses possible harmful factors.